Ughhh

[Mtuned]

So i had a issue with my t5 setup. And lost it


Well needing some lighting and being in a jam i had to resort to good ole craiglist.

Found two MH retrofit kits. 250w With Icecap Ballasts! Thats the good.


Now the bad

I got 6 Bulbs

2 Coralvue 20k
2 Hamilton 14k
2 (Unknown) This were brand new They Say HIT-250W 14000k And thats it


I have no clue how long the name brand bulbs were used. And neither did he.

And i dont know what brand the HIT stamped bulbs are.



And i REALLY honestly cannot afford new bulbs right now. Just got caught in some bad times

And i dont want to loose all my precious coral


What do i do!

Currently i have the Hamilton bulbs in and everything seems ok. Minor algae growth.

 

[Mtuned]

Is there anyway to tell if a bulb is going bad or not? Or how long its been used?

 

[turbo21]

halide bulbs wil still put out usable light even after a year of use. the only thing that happens is the spectrum shifts and the light output decreases. you should be fine for a while til u can get back on track